DRO on lathe

[maverick]

Would like to equip my Delta rockwell 12" lathe with a DRO. Has any one done this?
What brand did you use? How about scale location as I have a taper attachment.
I fitted a grizzly unit to my Tree UVR and that went well so this sounds like a good step.

 

[Mainer]

One point to consider: since the work gets reduced by the diameter when the tool moves the radius, any DRO on the cross slide needs to be at least 2X the precision you want to get. I considered the idea of putting a DRO on my lathe, decided I'd want a scale that would read to +/- 0.0001", priced those and the accompanying display, and gave up. I decided a micrometer to measure diameter and a 1" travel dial indicator on the bed to measure carriage travel would suffice.

You may not be as compulsive about it as I was, though.

FWIW, I got my mill DRO from www.candomachinery.com and liked their service and prices. (Usual disclaimers.)

 

[Swede]

One of the challenges of retrofitting older machines w/DRO is the shape of the bed castings and lack of space on the cross slide. I'm not familiar with the Delta, but many older machines have a curvy art-deco casting shape that leaves no obvious planar location to mount the scales. I managed with an old Hardinge HLV-B that has a bed casting that is all curves, everywhere! It can be done. ;D

If you opt for the more accurate glass scales, have a plan in mind for the mounting. It can be tricky. One of the better plans is to mount an aluminum bracket or extrusion to the lathe which will ultimately have the scale mounted to IT. The aluminum bracket can use a heavy cap screw at each end for main attachment, and a pair of long set screws (say #6 or #8) to adjust the cant or alignment of the bracket. When parallel and true, mount your scale.

Or... "pads" can be built up of some composite material, like epoxy w/glass fibers or similar, so as to create a proper mount. Just be sure the pads won't degrade with oils and age.

Of the two, I like the notion of a bracket better. Good luck!

 

[Xlmyford]

Hello.

Having a 3 axis DRO on the mill for a year and loving it,
I added a DRO to my Myford S7 recently.
The scales were bought at Allendales in the UK,the SINO Readout has been ordered here in Germany.
The only challenge was to build a bracket for the cross slide‘s scale.
A DRO on the lathe is worth every cent,IMHO.

I hope this pictures are of some use.
Ralph

 

[maverick]

Thanks to all for the suggestions. I'm taking Swedes advice and mounting an aluminum bar that will mimic the
scale or be a mounting place for it.
Ralph, neat idea to cantilever the scale off the back. I'd have to be careful not to bump it. Nice shop too.